5 fictional vehicles that actually were built

Every child who loves cars more than likely got into them from seeing them on TV or in movies. In the world of fiction vehicles can do anything the writer desires. With this you can have trucks becoming giant robots, a dodge charger jumping across valleys easily or even have one powered by running. This is doubly true with those that never existed at all in their original source. However, despite the fact that these vehicles were drawn or rendered, it doesn’t stop fans from wanting one. With this in mind here are five fictional vehicles that intrepid engineers actually built.

The Flintstones Foot-powered car

One of the most classic shows that the whole family enjoyed, The Flintstones introduced the world to the prehistoric town of Bedrock. A mirror of our world running on Stone Age technology the cars seen were driven not by engines but the drivers legs. When the movie based on the show came around the production had an interesting challenge. How do you make a vehicle made of stone and sticks work?

Fortunately the man on the job was George Barris, who was Hollywood’s go to car replica creator, creating the Batmobile, the Munster Koach and updating KITT. He developed two cars, one that was actually foot-powered and made of foam and fibreglass. The other however actually drove itself by having a golf cart modified and placed under the chassis, perfect for action scenes. This fictional vehicle brought to life was sold on eBay in 2016 for the price of $15,100 (£11600).

The Mystery Machine

Scooby-Doo has been watched by children since the 1960’s and one of the features that has stuck with the show since then has been the mystery machine. Its groovy colours and fictional shape has made it one of the most common themed vehicle paint jobs you see. It’s only competition for this in custom van paint jobs would be the A-Team colours.

When it came to making the fictional van a reality it’s been done professionally from many sources. The live-action movies from the early 2000’s opted for a Ford Econoline. Looking online you can find lots of people having the job done. But if you want a real quality job you can actually buy a professionally customised Mystery Machine from idealclassiccars.net for around $46,000 (£35,000).

The Halo Warthog

One of the highest grossing video game franchises of all time, Halo has built several iconic items over its run. This ranges from the armour of the Spartan super-soldiers to the weaponry to, of course, the vehicles. The M12 Light Reconnaissance Vehicle (Or more simply, The Warthog), is a favourite of fans since the first games release in 2001.

Fans have built replicas repeatedly over the years, either as an art project or being hired for some form of production like the live action Forward unto Dawn and upcoming television series. Usually these futuristic military vehicles are actually made out of off-road classics. One that went up for sale in the UK in 2012 was built out of a Land Rover Defender and was offered at around £17,500 pounds before being sold for only £500.

The Speed Racer Mach 5

Speed Racer was a classic of the 1960’s and 70’s for children worldwide. The story of a teenage boy trying to become the world’s greatest race car driver. This anime adaptation was wildly successful with its characters like Speed himself and the mysterious Racer X. However, what really stuck out to people was the car. The Mach 5 grabbed people with its sleek lines, striking white colour, and the fact that it was just cool. What kid didn’t want a car with all the gadgets you could ask for?

The interest in the Mach 5 was reignited when the 2008 movie came out. They instead decided to hang their car from a crane and move it using computer effects (In a movie filled to the brim with CG). However, there has been a lot of actual builds to give fans their own cool future car. In fact, like the last entry, you can actually buy the Mach 5 in all its sleek and pointy glory.

The Tron Light Cycle

The ultimate fictional bike. Both films it appeared in were live action but no bikes were built outside of stationary props. The very first movie to incorporate computer generated effects throughout its production was Tron. Its sequel Tron Legacy tried to keep the same striking style. The cycle seen in this movie was sleek with a glossy black and neon lights. However it’s shape and size would make it near impossible to make an actually usable motorcycle.

Enter the Andrew’s collection, who custom built an electronic bike that recreated the beautiful lines of the light-cycle. It even had wheels that you could see right through. It was sold at auction in 2015 for $77,000 (£59,000) after an estimate of $40,000. Today you can actually buy something like this for yourself. ParkerBrothersConcepts have a line of Neutron cycles inspired by the Tron light cycle with prices starting at $55,000 (£42,000). They are street legal and have a range of around 100 miles before needing charging. For a bike that seemed impossible, something only found in computer worlds, engineers have proved that the impossible can be reality.